The conventional independent wheel suspension assembly of an automotive vehicle is grammatically illustrated in FIG. 1. A parallelogrammic linkage 1 is used between the infrastructure of the vehicle 2 and the upright wheel mounting member 3. The linkage 1 operates about the four pivoting points 4, 5, 6 and 7. The upper arm 8 of the linkage generally has a triangular or wishbone shape in order for provide clearance for the vertically mounted damper or shock absorber 9 connected between the lower arm 10 and an anchor point 11 in the upper part of the infrastructure 2. In a front wheel assembly, a steering arm 12 extends from the wheel mounting upright member 3 and is pivotally connected to the track rod 13. The wheel 14 mounts on the hub 15 which forms an integral part of the upright member 3 and contains the brake mechanism.
In many sport cars and racing cars where the lowest possible profile is desirable, the damper anchoring point 11 constitutes the highest point of the vehicle infrastructure. A lower profile can only be achieved by reducing the lengths of the damper to its practical limit. The minimum height of the damper attachment becomes a critically limiting parameter. The problem is compounded in self-powered and remotely controlled model racing cars due to the impossibility of making effective dampers commensurate in size with the model vehicle. Accordingly, it is now impossible to maintain a proper scale relationship between the wheel suspension assembly and the overall dimensions of the model vehicle.